Terran continues the story of the plight of the Parseon women with a stubborn, sassy human and a dominating, Parseon Alpha who is determined to have her.
This entire Breeder series by Cara Bristol is a delight to read. It is well thought out and well written. It continues to shine a light on the status of the Parseon women who are little better than slaves and the changing tide within the planet as their leaders learn that females have value beyond what has been bestowed upon them for centuries. It is eye-opening to see the changes in attitudes of the men and also the people as the planet sits at the brink of civil war.
"“
... Males take. Females don’t have a choice.” Marlix pressed Tara
against his chest. He was silent for a long moment, and then he sighed.
“It is better when it is given and not taken,” he said."
When I first encountered Marlix in Breeder, I did not like him. When I found out he was to be the hero in Terran, I did not know if I would like him as he seems to be a cruel and brutal man. However, Ms Bristol did not disappoint and while he appeared to be a real Neanderthal and a typical Parseon Alpha who treated women as objects, he was a product of his upbringing and his culture. Marlix underwent a huge paradigm shift when he meets Tara and then decides to kidnap her and keep her even though he does not understand his feelings or his need for her since they are so foreign to him. They are so culturally different Marlix doesn't even realise kidnapping is wrong. Tara brings out the softer emotions and characteristics in him and opens his mind to things like equality or at least more freedom for women. I grew to like Marlix as he underwent his personal transformation. He did act like a jerk a few times by Terran standards along the way but only because he was reverting to a culture and behaviour he understood. By the end of the book, I had become very fond of him.
Tara is a real spitfire. She's sassy and she's stubborn. She also demonstrates what a large cultural divide there is between herself and Marlix as they dance around each other and misunderstandings occur.
"It
was as if he held strong feelings for her but didn’t know what socially
appropriate behavior was."
While I don't think Tara will think of herself as brave, I think she is. I love her sass.
"“Thank
you for your purchase. Come again. Don’t let the door hit you on the
ass,” she said, sounding not at all sincere in her gratitude,
invitation, or expression of concern."
She stood her ground to Marlix and she did what she could to try to get herself out of what she viewed as a bad situation. I liked that Marlix confused her as much as she confused him. There were times when she second guessed herself, her feelings and her decisions and I think those times of introspection showed a great deal of maturity on her part.
I am enjoying seeing how the Parseon society is evolving with its treatment of their women. Can't wait to read the next book to see how much the society changes as civil war sweeps through.
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Aw, thanks for the review! I'm such a pantser, I start writing every series thinking it's going to be a standalone book. Then I get into it and realize I have a series on my hands. So...when I started writing Breeder, I made Marlix one of the bad guys (although not a true villain), not knowing I'd want to use him later as a hero! So it was challenge to redeem him in book 2, Terran.
ReplyDeleteReaders will get to see more of Marlix in book 3, Warrior. He returns as a secondary character, although the book is Urazi and Anika's story.
Oh yes, Marlix was a conundrum for me. I'm glad I grew to like him as much as I did.
DeleteI need to start reading this series it sounds really good.
ReplyDeleteThis is an excellent series. The books are exceptional and some of the best Cara has written.
DeleteSounds like the author is a really good storyteller, but it may be hard for me to get past the initial characteristics of the hero enough to really get into the entire book. Glad it worked well for you, and you gave a really good review. Hugs...
ReplyDeleteHe does come off as quite the autocratic alpha male but I did enjoy his transformation throughout the story.
Delete